Ramallah – 21: September 2011: The Hebron Magistrate's Court Judge yesterday issued the decision to acquit journalist Alaa Al-Titi of all charges of breaching the peace and inciting sectarian violence through his work at Aqsa TV. Al-Titi was charged in October 2008, with yesterday marking the twenty-ninth session of his trial.

Al-Titi today told MADA that his trial was conducted in two sessions, with his lawyer Mr. Hamza Awad presenting a written defence refuting the charges against his client in the first, and the judge issuing the acquittal in the second; a full three years after the charges were first brought. This is the second time Al-Titi has been acquitted of these charges after the prosecution successfully appealed the courts not guilty verdict on 24 April 2009.

The Palestinian Center for Development and Media Freedoms (MADA) welcomesthe court’s decision and commends the Palestinian judiciary, and additionally calls upon all concerned authorities to stop indicting journalists based on their professional work.